The field of the invention is sporting goods and the invention relates more particularly to roller hockey and to pucks used for roller hockey.
Numerous designs of pucks have been used for use on surfaces other than ice. For the professional or upper level of roller hockey, the game is played on a relatively smooth cement surface. The game, however, is also commonly played on asphalt streets and other rough surfaces. The typical solid or completely filled puck has a significant tendency to bounce along a rough surface and will often flip over or onto its side.
One style of roller hockey puck is a completely hollow blow-molded puck completely filled with granulated sugar or other material and having a central vertical rivet or bolt to prevent the puck from bowing outwardly or twisting out of shape.
A professional level of puck which is also commonly used for street hockey is shown in applicant's U.S. Pat. No. 5,275,410.
A puck having a central weight and an outer ring of foam is shown in White, Sr. U.S. Pat. No. 4,078,801. A Puck containing an impact measuring device is shown in the Shepherd U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,720. A puck having built-in projections is shown in the Keating, et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,184,820. A felt puck including a ballast weight is shown in the Beauchamp, et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,887,188. Another puck having built-in bosses and an opening 8 the center is shown in the Hsieh U.S. Pat. No. 5,288,072. A game puck having an air-cushioned hollow annular bumper is shown in Canadian Patent No. 2,070,003. A puck with a central depression and balls on the surface is shown in the Felber U.S. Pat. No. 3,784,204. A partially filled hollow puck is shown in the Bigornia, et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,284,343. A sliding game piece having an annular hollow rubber bumper is shown in the McGee U.S. Pat. No. 2,812,184 which is not a puck.
None of these patents show a puck which can be used in roller hockey games on a rough surface which has a lesser tendency to turn over during play.